Review on 🌱 AquaSprouts Garden: Transform Your 10 Gallon Aquarium with a Self-Sustaining Desktop Aquaponics Ecosystem by Austin Arvayo

AquaSprouts provided me with a useful base for getting started with aquaponics. However, it could be better if some inferior accessories are excluded and the price is lowered to simply reflect the basic structure. I read the reviews before buying and I already had a setup plan and expected additional costs - so should you. In short, I'm very happy with the end results, but wish the original product was a lot cheaper if they ruled out "bloated software". basics. The dimensions of the AquaSprouts tank appear to be tailored to the ubiquitous $10 10-gallon Aqueon tank. I suspect other 10Gals might have trouble fitting under it - either too tall or too wide. - As others have noted, the kit does not include lights, a tank, or any other aquarium/gardening items other than gardening supplies. Be prepared to spend at least another $40-$60 to complete the basic setup. My setup: - I started a new tank of fish about a month before setting up this aquaponic garden section, just felt more used to doing it in that order. - Wolstad style planted tank with organic garden soil coated with Flourite Black. A small piezoelectric air pump was added to inflate the sponge filter and balloon on each side, mainly for aesthetic reasons. A heater was also added. I positioned the AquaSprouts "inverted" with the spill lip facing forward and the front of the tank sticking out, rather than the standard tank front being flush with the AquaSprouts design. This greatly simplifies access to the aquarium for feeding, cleaning, etc., since everything is in front of the wall. - A cheap LED aquarium light attached to the underside of the AquaSprouts farm blanket with Velcro. — I bought the same LED. above for the garden, fastened with zips under the provided ledge. - Forgo the included water pump because it was too bulky with an unnecessarily thick power cord. Replaced by a 3rd party - Rejected the included black water pump tube because again it was too bulky and stiff. Replaced with transparent hose and connector. - Replaced the included analog timer plug with a smart plug, again too bulky and outdated. Here you get the idea. Virtually every powered device in this setup is connected to an Alexa-compatible smart socket, except for the permanent ones (heater, air pump). All of this could be accommodated on a splitter. All lighting and water pump schedules are fully automated and managed via Alexa routines. Lighting: 13 hours both in the aquarium and in the garden. Water Pump: 15 minutes per hour as recommended by AquaSprouts, although I use it for 13 hours so as not to disturb the fish during the night. in addition to all the other stuff I wanted for my particular setup. But after putting in all this effort I am very happy with the results and the plants I experience grow very fast from day one which is a pleasant surprise.